On this day in 1738, John Wesley had an experience for which he'd been longing and that became crucial for the continued vitality of the movement he led. Here he is in his own words.
"In the evening I went very unwillingly to a society in Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s preface to the Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while the leader was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."
The rest, as they say, is history.